Parent perspectives of the French Immersion enrolment process

The purpose of this study is to gain an understanding of parents' experiences of the French Immersion program enrolment process. I used a qualitative approach via one-on-one interviews with parents from a kindergarten French Immersion classroom in Richmond, British Columbia. I am exploring their perspectives, the reasons they choose to enrol their children, and determine what information is being shared with them. Results indicate that parents hold the common misconception that children in French Immersion have more positive personality traits and behaviours than the English stream. There also seems to be a lack of program information being received by parents. This has caused parents to feel unprepared and uncertain as to whether the program is a good fit for their children. More effort should be made by the school district to share program information and resources so that parents can make an informed educational decision for their families.